


I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm

by scottxlogan



Series: Holiday Prompts [2]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Fluff, Happy Ending, Holidays, Light Angst, M/M, New Year's Eve, New Year's Eve Party, holiday fic, slightly AU, this does not follow canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-20
Updated: 2021-01-20
Packaged: 2021-03-18 18:20:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,561
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28871475
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/scottxlogan/pseuds/scottxlogan
Summary: Steve and Bucky prepare to spend New Year's Eve together in a posh hotel suite in NYC, but Steve has a few other surprises up his sleeve to welcome Bucky into his world.
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers
Series: Holiday Prompts [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2081943
Comments: 13
Kudos: 24





	I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Wolfsheart](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wolfsheart/gifts).



> This was written as part of the holiday fic challenge. The challenge was I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm (which I may have skimped on yet again, so it gets the title and hopefully a little bit of a blend into the fic) and it was given to me by Wolfsheart.
> 
> Thanks for the challenge and I hope everyone enjoys this little fluff, happy piece I put together for the challenge :)

There was something about New Year’s Eve in the city that hadn’t changed through the years. Despite the time that had passed from the early days where Bucky had first witnessed the Big Apple in all its beauty, there was one thing that remained the same through the holidays. It began and ended with the spirit of New York City. The city had a life of its own. Strong, resilient, enduring a great deal of tragedy before rebuilding itself much like Bucky had after life had ripped away all he’d known. He’d seen so many things, endured so many horrors, but the one light at the end of the tunnel was the man walking through the door to the fancy, overpriced hotel suite that Bucky just as soon would’ve balked at spending time at for any other occasion.

“Are we really doing this?” Bucky questioned turning his attention to his companion only to discover Steve returning to the room with two bags in his arms filled with multicolored party hats, flowing streamers and a vast array of ridiculous decorations to spruce up the generic looking suite around them.

“It’s your first New Year back home Buck,” Steve used his foot to gently kick the hotel room door to a close behind him. He shuffled the bags in his arms, clumsily crossing the suite to join Bucky by the window where the crowd outside the room formed in the street, crunched together and singing along to the rock band that was on center stage blocks beyond their hotel room’s view, “I want everything to be perfect.”

“Being with you is perfect,” Bucky responded rotating to face his companion, “This is more than I ever could’ve asked for…”

“But not nearly enough of what you deserve,” Steve explained setting the bags down. He crossed the room to reach for Bucky in a heartfelt embrace. His bicep curled around Bucky’s lean, muscular frame, drawing Bucky flush against his chest as their gazes locked again. This time Bucky could perceive the love reflected in Steve’s eyes, could feel the words on the tip of his tongue as Bucky took the initiative to angle upward and present a chaste kiss upon Steve’s lips. The gesture seemed to surprise his old friend, lending weight to the moment as it served up as a token of Bucky’s appreciation. In knowing that Steve had bypassed a night out on the town with his fellow Avengers in favor of taking a quiet journey into the new year with Bucky at his side, Bucky felt a bit guilt-ridden.

“I know you had other places you could’ve been tonight,” Bucky sighed placing his hand over the center of Steve’s chest. His fingers gingerly rubbed over the expanse memorizing everything about the man before him, knowing the love in his heart as Bucky found himself wishing that he could be all that his companion deserved. There were still so many things up in the air—so many apologies that Bucky knew he should offer to Steve after he’d risked everything to save him—to make him whole again, but as Steve held him, he knew that now wasn’t the time for that. Now was for seizing the moment and cherishing it for all it was worth, “You didn’t have to stay with me.”

“I wanted to Buck,” Steve replied grinning widely with that same sheepish smirk that melted Bucky’s heart every time they were together, “There’s nowhere else in the world that I’d rather be at, then at your side. It’s where I belong.”

“I know you say that, but…” Bucky opened his mouth to protest, hoping to convey his thoughts to his lover, but instead he was met by another snug embrace. Steve’s strong arms encircled him hosting him up off the ground into Steven’s chest, allowing them a moment of tenderness away from the loud booming music. Their lips met in a soft, gentle kiss far from the gathering crowd preparing to ring in the new year with hopes and dreams for the future.

_The future,_ Bucky thought to himself knowing that for so long he’d been a broken man not only without a past, but without a future ahead of him. For so long he’d been lost in the madness that had been forced upon him, a monster who was nothing more than a mere shell of a man, but with Steve at his side he found himself again. He was able to climb out of the darkness of the nightmare of his past that consumed him in the waking hours. For the first time in his life he found the one thing that he’d felt had evaded him since he’d almost died on that fateful snow filled day. With Steve at his side, he found himself surrounded by hope and ready to discover what it meant to be at peace embraced by the one man who’d never doubted his return. Steve was the one person who’d never turned away even when Bucky was at his worst, yet somehow in Steve’s arms, Bucky still felt unworthy of such a reprieve. He felt as if the love he’d found hadn’t been earned and in knowing that, he withdrew from the kiss, hoping like hell that he could offer something more to Steve.

“You should be with your friends,” Bucky sighed.

Bucky skimmed his fingers over the center of Steve’s broad, muscular chest feeling the rapid beating of his lover’s heart and hating that his very presence created a wedge between Steve and the others. Not that he blamed them for fearing and despising him after all he’d done. He’s known that the road to redemption would be a hard one paved with a great many challenges, but what he hadn’t been prepared for was the idea that Steve would be ringing in the new year away from those whom he’d cared about in this new world they were surrounded by.

“Who said that I’m not going to be?” Steve wiggled his brow suggestively and like clockwork there was a small tapping sound at the other side of the suite door causing Steve to pull away from Bucky with a small wink, “I’ll be right back.”

“But…” Bucky began preparing to question his companion’s actions when Steve opened the door to reveal, Sam, Scott Lang, Clint and Natasha on the other side of the door. Each one was armed with bags of their own pushing their way into the suite in between greeting Steve with smiling faces.

“We brought food, so I hope you’re hungry,” Clint announced to no one in particular as Sam rolled his eyes.

“Anything to shut you up,” Sam groaned outwardly, “I’m going to need drinking and soon…”

“On it,” Clint piped up perhaps too enthusiastically juggling the bags in his arms, “Who wants a beer?”

“Count me in,” Scott called out before throwing a small wave in Bucky’s general direction, “Hey Bucky. Where you do want me to set up the poker station?”

“Poker station?” Bucky repeated watching as Steve’s friends went to work transforming the suite to a party central right before Bucky’s eyes. What was once a quiet room was suddenly a bright and festive atmosphere surrounded by laughter, rock music and the sounds of clinking glasses when Bucky approached the others not quite sure what to say to them.

“T’Challa should be on his way soon,” Natasha explained embracing Steve. She stretched upward to offer him a kiss on the cheek before stepping back, “He’s running behind, but he promised he’ll be here before midnight.”

“Thanks for being here tonight Nat,” Steve smiled down at his companion saying far more than Bucky could understand in their silent exchange when Bucky reluctantly held back observing them, “I know you thought you might have other plans tonight.”

“Well, you know,” Natasha waved her hand dismissively, “once you’ve been to one Stark New Year’s Eve party, you may as well have been at them all.”

“I appreciate this,” Steve’s solemn voice added.

“Of course. I wouldn’t dream of being anywhere else,” she squeezed her hand in his before looking around the room at the decorations that the others had begun to disperse, “You call this a party? Guys, come on you’ve got a lot to learn here.”

“So bossy,” Clint teased wrinkling his nose at her, “Why was it we invited you tonight?”

“Because I’m the only one classy enough to make this party a real party,” she answered with a shake of her head.

“I’ll drink to that,” Sam held up the beer bottle he’d been started sipping from.

“You better watch your mouth Clint or you’ll be the one walking home tonight,” Scott laughed lightly as Clint addressed the others with a playful laugh.

“Trust me, she wouldn’t dream of ditching me because she enjoys me too much,” Clint teased blowing a kiss in her general direction goading Natasha to react to his brazen display in front of the others.

“Just you wait! Now put your skills to good use and let’s get this party going,” Natasha warned moving over to hop on top of Clint’s back, wrapping her arms around his shoulders as the two moved to their corner of the room ready to finish with the display that Clint had set up for their night of cards and drinking.

“Steve?” Bucky questioned quietly approaching his companion once again, “I don’t understand. What is all of this?”

“Family buck,” Steve reached out to pull Bucky into his arms, “something that we could all use around the holidays right around now.”

“But I thought that…” Bucky found himself at a loss in realizing that all Steve’s friends who should understandably despise him were moving around the suite and appearing to have a good time. Observing the, Bucky found himself almost envious of the ease that they felt with Steve when it was clear that his companion had found so much more than he’d anticipated when Steve had awakened in the new world.

“They’re my family,” Steve whispered over the back of Bucky’s neck, “and they want to welcome you into our world as well.”

“But…” Bucky began preparing to question Steve further when there was another knocking sound at the other side of the door.

“Hold that thought,” Steve explained releasing Bucky in favor of going over to greet their new arrivals. When the door swung open Bucky felt his heart stop in seeing Tony Stark standing before him with an oversized, overpriced bottle of alcohol in his hand and dark glasses covering his eyes. He was leaning up against the door with messy dark hair looking as out of place as Bucky felt in watching the man who rightfully hated him in the archway to the suite that Steve had rented for the night.

“I figured with Clint as bartender you wouldn’t have anything beyond the cheap stuff tonight and that simply wasn’t an option,” Tony handed the bottle over to Steve. He lowered his glasses long enough to give Steve a brief perusal before pushing them back up the bridge of his nose again, “For a second I thought we were in the wrong place. Banner had the wrong hotel room and…”

“Tony had the wrong hotel room, which rather pleased the trio of girls back in the suite across the hall who were thrilled at the idea of Ironman crashing their party,” Bruce explained moving in beside Tony to announce his presence, “If I hadn’t pulled him away, he might’ve been lost in a night of drinks and jacuzzi time…”

“And miss out on all of this team bonding?” Tony’s wide grin expanded, “Who do you take me for?”

“What about the party at the tower?” Steve couldn’t help but ask as Tony stood up taller to face him.

“That’s old news. No one hardly notices if I’m there or if I’m away,” Tony waved his hand dismissively, “Besides what kind of Avengers party would it be without the greatest Avenger of them all here to celebrate tonight?”

“No worries I’m already here,” Clint shouted across the room with laughter.

“Keep telling yourself that Legolas,” Tony countered. He patted Steve on the shoulder before observing Bucky in the corner of the entryway, waiting in the shadows silently observing Tony. With a cracking pop of the gum he was chewing, Tony addressed Bucky with a nod doing his best to be pleasant in his approach, “Let’s see what you and Capsicle have going on for tonight.”

“It’s…um, it’s nice to have you here,” Bucky blurted out feeling his stomach tied in knots at the idea of having a man he’d wronged in one of the worst ways imaginable before his eyes ready to welcome the idea of bringing in the new year with him and Steve.

“Thank my other half for our being here tonight,” Tony added with muted warmth in his voice. A small smile teased over the corners of his lips when it was clear he was caught up in a moment of contemplation, “He’s on his way as well, but true to his dramatic form he’s planning on making a grand entrance before the ball drops.”

“I look forward to it,” Bucky smiled watching as Tony moved through the suite engaging in small talk with the others on the team, doing his best to familiarize himself with the suite and the bar that Clint had set up across the room. When Steve finally shut the door to the suite, Bucky found himself at a loss knowing that this was by far the last thing he’d anticipated when Steve had requested that they stay in the posh hotel for the holiday, “Steve?”

“Don’t ask,” Steve replied with a sly grin, “When I told Nat about what we were doing, she told Clint, who of course told Sam and before I knew it, they were all clamoring for an invite and…”

“I…I had no idea that they would even consider…” Bucky found himself at a loss watching as Steve’s friends and coworkers all came together to celebrate the occasion without any of the tension or the hostility that had marked most of their exchanges in the past.

“It was easy to entice all of them into being here tonight. Granted, it took a little bit of arm twisting with Tony, but then again what Loki and Tony do in their down time is none of my business,” Steve’s arms surrounded Bucky once again, embracing the hope that the end of the year had brought upon them, “I know that I probably should’ve asked you about this, but…”

“No,” Bucky interrupted with a shake of his head, “Steve it’s perfect. This is…more than I ever could’ve imagined…to be a part of your life then and now…”

“You’ll always be the most important part of my life Buck,” Steve promised caressing the side of Bucky’s face, spreading the warmth of his touch into his skin and replacing the emptiness that had engulfed him for so very long. Now, as they stood together about to embark upon a night with all the others Steve had cared about, Bucky found hope that maybe just maybe together they could make a new place for themselves back home in New York with new friends and new dreams for a brighter future ahead of them.


End file.
